More than nine in ten people in Ireland are concerned about the everyday cost of living due to price hikes, according to a major EU-wide survey released by the European Commission, reports Breaking News.
The report also showed that Irish citizens ranked second highest in Europe when it came to worries about the future, particularly related to housing affordability.
In addition, satisfaction levels among Irish people were among the lowest in the EU when it came to access to quality childcare and healthcare, reports Breaking News.
The Eurobarometer survey, titled Investing in Fairness, explored EU citizens’ views on fairness and social inclusion, including financial security and general well-being.
It discovered that 91 per cent of Irish participants said they were anxious about their household’s future due to everyday living expenses caused by increasing prices.
This was the ninth highest percentage among the 27 EU countries, where overall, 88 per cent expressed concern about daily living costs, reports Breaking News.
Across the EU, worry levels varied from 47 per cent in Denmark to 97 per cent in Portugal.
As with many other Europeans, Irish respondents also voiced concern about declining public service quality, child poverty, and the challenge of affording a home, reports Breaking News.
Sixty per cent of people in Ireland indicated concern about keeping up with rent or mortgage payments, while a similar number felt their pay didn’t reflect their qualifications and experience.
The study found that 92 per cent of Irish respondents were troubled by housing affordability, with only Portugal registering a higher figure. The EU-wide average stood at 82 per cent, reports Breaking News.
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Ireland also had the seventh highest level of concern regarding declining public service quality, with 90 per cent citing access to hospitals, schools, and childcare as a worry.
On a more optimistic note, 39 per cent of Irish people reported no concerns about the quality of education in the country—ranking sixth highest and more than double the EU average of 18 per cent, reports Breaking News.
The Eurobarometer poll, which gathered input from over 26,000 individuals across the EU—including over 1,000 from Ireland—also looked at views on job satisfaction.
Irish workers were found to be less anxious than the EU average about their skills becoming outdated due to the increasing role of digital technology in society, reports Breaking News.
Additionally, nearly two-thirds of Irish workers (64 per cent)—the same as the EU average—said they were concerned about future prospects due to a lack of job opportunities.
Both employed and unemployed people in Ireland placed more importance on training than many of their EU counterparts, with a strong willingness to participate in digital skills training, reports Breaking News.
Irish respondents also ranked among the most supportive of initiatives aimed at giving young people access to essentials like education, childcare, training, and affordable housing.
According to the European Commission, the results of this survey will help guide future policies to build a fairer and more inclusive society, reports Breaking News.
It said that overall satisfaction levels with jobs among EU citizens indicated broad contentment with work conditions throughout the bloc.
Ireland shared the second highest job satisfaction rating—93 per cent—with Finland and the Netherlands, just behind Denmark. The EU average was 85 per cent.
However, the Commission noted that only a slim majority of people across Europe were happy with the quality of healthcare and social services, underlining the need for more improvement in those areas, reports Breaking News.
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